What are Subterranean Termites?

As you might already know, they aren’t pretty to look at nor do you want them in your home. But why exactly?

Yes, they eat through your home, but the worst part is that they are incredibly efficient!

Subterranean termites live in a caste system with a
queen who requires several hundred of her soldiers to move her. She
lays an egg every 15 seconds! The soldiers make up most of the termite
population. They basically work 24 hours a day foraging for food,
chewing on cellulose and then… (hope you haven’t had lunch yet)
regurgitating it so that the queen and soldiers can digest it.

The soldier termites are not peaceful beings, and they protect the
colony by warding off ant enemies. They keep their colony hidden
through dark tunnels in the soil and into wooden frames of buildings.

To date, there are about 2,600 to 4,000 species known making them mysterious yet prolific beasts of nature. Eastern subterranean termites
and Formosan termites are abundant in Southwest Florida i.e. Naples,
Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, and Bonita Springs because of the
tropical climate. Like a large Mafia family, they stick together to get
the job done and are incredibly successful at it.

Subterranean termites aren’t all that bad…as long as
they aren’t in your home, right? They actually recycle wood and other
plant matter that create a healthy ecological environment.